The genesis of the geological units of Mozambique is related to the movement of tectonic plates. Most of the terrain consists of phanerozoics having being formed between the Pre-Cambrian and the Quaternary periods (Afonso et al. 1998). The Protozoic geologic era encompassed the pre-Gondwana, Gondwana and PostGondwana formations. The most important episode in the Gondwana formation was the formation of a trench between Africa and Madagascar. 


The expansion of the seabed which occurred during this phase was followed by marine transgression over the eastern margin of Mozambique. This transgressive episode is responsible for the sedimentary deposits which form the coast of Pemba and Maputo. In the same period due to the faulting, the tectonic activities formed the regions of Sena, Mágue and Maconde (Afonso et al. 1998) A much more stable phase occurred from the Cretaceous to the upper Eocene. The Neorifting phase occurred from the Oligocene up to the present, during which areas such as Inharime, Morrumbene, Inhaminga, Querimbas and Lacerda were formed. The main basins such as Rovuma, Save, Zambezi and Limpopo were created during the Post-Gondwana.

 The coastal region of Mozambique is characterized by lowlands that rise landward to above 200m, fifteen to 40km from the shoreline. The coastline is characterized by beaches, recent dunes and inland lagoons in the south, by mangrove forests, swampy depressions and series of low beach ridges in the central region. Small dunes alternating with cliffs are found further in the north. The alluvial valleys have fertile clay soils and are covered by steppe-like vegetation. There are also extensive plains and inland dunes with poor sandy soils and savanna vegetation (Afonso et al. 1998). 

 Issues Major issue is the loss and modification of ecosystems and habitats, linked to coastal erosion and deposition processes due to human activities and by flooding due to storm surge and river discharge.  Gaps There is a need to monitor the changes of the coastline and to determine factors controlling the sediment dynamics (i.e. erosion and deposition processes). In particular, there is a need to determine the effect of the vegetation in the stabilization of coastal sand dunes and mangrove fringed coasts

 Since most of the Mozambique coast is characterised by lowlands, there is a need to map the vulnerability of these areas to flooding. There is also a need to set up a network of seismic stations along the coast and inland in order to monitor seismic activities. freshwater resources and drainage

Mozambique has an extensive drainage network that includes about 100 principal river basins and a number of international rivers. The international rivers originate in the Central African plateaus discharging their waters into the Indian Ocean through Mozambique (Afonso et al. 1998). These rivers include the Rovuma, Zambezi, Save, Limpopo and Imcomati Rivers. The most important national rivers systems are the Lúrio, Licungo, and Messalo Rivers.   


The surface runoff generated within the country per year is estimated to be 80 x109m3, which corresponds to approximately 10% of the mean annual rainfall. About 70% of the river runoff occurs in the rainy season (Kunder, 1975). However, the runoff entering the country through the international rivers is higher being 95 x 109m3. The Zambezi River contributes most of this volume, with approximately 81 x 109m3. 

Runoff of these rivers has decreased progressively over the years, as water is used for development in neighbouring countries such as South Africa, Swaziland, Angola, Zambia, Malawi, Zimbabwe, among others. A number of lakes are found in Mozambique. The most important are the Niassa, Chirua, Chiúta and Amaramba. The region between Mozambique Island and Bazaruto Island is influenced by several large rivers that drain into the sea through estuarine and delta systems. 

Some examples of these systems are the Pungué and Bons Sinais and the Zambezi. The impacts to the coast by these rivers are due deposition of materials as well as coastal erosion due to the strong currents at the river mouths. Coastal erosion and sediment deposition are impacting negatively on the tourism, environment and transport sectors. 


The major issue is the modification of streamflow leading to freshwater shortage, reduction or excessive • runoff. Human activities in Mozambique and neighbouring countries have modified river flow through retention of water for irrigation, domestic and industrial use and construction of dams for electricity generation. The HEP production requires the maintenance of artificial runoff throughout the year, which is often high during the dry season and low during the rainy season, compared with natural flows. The rivers influence productivity of downstream ecosystems. For instance, the Zambezi river discharge is associated with an increase in the catches of shallow water shrimp in the Sofala Bank (Gammelsrød 1992). The artificial flow or freshwater shortage has negative impacts on the health and integrity of the downstream and coastal ecosystems. Further, shoreline stability in the estuaries and adjacent coast is mostly dependent on the input of sediments from rivers. Given that sediment dynamics is governed by the river runoff, freshwater shortage leads to sediment deficit, and consequently coastal erosion prevails. ii) Gaps In order to safeguard the health and integrity of the downstream coastal ecosystems, there is a need to • maintain environmental flows. The major challenge in maintaining environmental flows include lack of understanding of the ecosystem structure and functioning. The interactions within and between ecosystems are complex and require multidisciplinary research approaches. There is also a gap in the understanding of the coupled river basin and coastal systems including the main drivers of ecological, hydrodynamics and morphodynamic changes in the estuaries and coastal waters.  There is a need to set up and maintain an operational network of the river gauging stations to provide data to support modelling and predicting of floods in Mozambique, including facilitating water resources management and planning.